Jalen Coker has blossomed into a clear top-two wide receiver for the Carolina Panthers.
Once upon a time, and not all that long ago, Coker was at risk of being lost to a different NFL team, though.
It’s a fact circulating on social media ahead of the Panthers’ Week 2 game against the Atlanta Falcons, in large part because Coker is coming off an eight-catch, two-TD game in Week 1.
Coker seems like a perfectly logical player to feature in the offense now.
Just more than two years ago, though, he was far from a sure thing.
Jalen Coker Risk
The Panthers signed Coker as an undrafted free agent in 2024 and gave him a chance to win a job during training camp and the preseason.
Coker didn’t actually win a roster spot, though.
On August 28, 2024, the Panthers waived Coker. They had to do that to potentially get him on the practice squad.
Panthers have waived UDFA receiver Jalen Coker, per league source and as @mike_e_kaye reported.
Would be a logical practice squad WR if he clears waivers.ā Joe Person (@josephperson) August 28, 2024
Coker being on waivers meant another team could’ve claimed him, which would’ve taken him fully away from the Panthers.
Instead, Coker slid through the cracks unnoticed.
Remember when we waived Jalen Coker and nobody picked him up lol https://t.co/KOC2joITFP
ā š (@ThomasWrrld) September 17, 2026
The Panthers didn’t take too long into Coker’s rookie season to start incorporating him into the offense.
Sure, he was an undrafted player, but he was a big and reliable target, and so Carolina found ways to start using him more.
Two years later, there’s no question as to Coker’s roster spot. He’s the Panthers’ No. 2 WR and a guy that the rest of the NFL must be kicking itself over for not recognizing what he was capable of.
Jalen Coker Irony
The irony, of course, is that the Panthers didn’t even realize what Coker was capable of.
Clearly, Coker has worked out, but that was a bit by luck.
If someone had claimed him off waivers in late August of 2024, Coker may have broken out somewhere else. Or he would’ve never gotten the opportunity he has in Carolina, which could’ve stunted his growth altogether.
Coker may not have been made to be a first-round draft pick, but he has always been a solid football player, and he has gotten the chance to prove that in Carolina.
It’s fair to wonder what might have happened to Coker in an alternate universe.
But then the Panthers fans ought to appreciate what they have. Somehow, this undrafted free agent who they didn’t always even want has turned into a star, a guy who the rest of the NFL is learning the name of bit by bit.
Coker remains a Panther, maybe for the long haul. It was very close to that changing forever.
Panthers Nearly Lost Jalen Coker